Apparatus for bending and straightening hot rails



(No Model.) v 3 H. O. 'KRIBTE. Apparatus for Bending and Straightening Hot Rails.

No. 239,966. Patented April 12,1881.

A if

JZfi, l Z .7 2 H' 6 o o o I B og G1 I I: I v GI I a 'j WIT'N E55 5 N-PEfERS, PMOTGLITHDGRAPHER, WASHXNGTON. D c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY O. KRIETE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

APPARATUS FOR BENDING AND STRAIGHTENING HOT RAlL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 239,966, dated April 12, 1881.

Y L Application filed January 10,1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY O. KRIETE, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Apparatus for Bending and Straightening Hot Rails, of which the following is a specification.

In the manufacture of railroad-rails, when they come from the rolls, the base is somewhat cooler, and has contracted more than the head by reason of the greater thickness of the head of the rails. If therails are allowed to cool down from this point without further manipulation, they will be of curved form when cold, the head, from its greater contraction, being the concave side, while the base is the convex side, of the curve. Hence it is necessary to bend the rails while still heated in the reverse direction to the curve just described, in order that they may be straight when cooled down to an uniform temperature.

Now, it is the object of my invention to produce a simple apparatus for bending hot rails in this manner, which can beoperated quicker and more conveniently that the machine heretofore employed, and the rails when bent can be moved to either side on the cooling-bed.

My invention consists in the peculiar novel devices and combinations of devices employed by me for this purpose, as fully hereinafter explained, and pointed out by the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof, Figure l is a top view of the cooling-bed and the rail-bendingapparatus; Fig. 2, a sectional end elevation of the same, drawn upon a larger scale; Fig. 3, an enlarged sectional elevation of the ball-joint connection between the presser-plates and the push-bars;

Fig. 4, a cross-section of the ball-joint on line 4. 4 in Fig. 3; Fig. 5, an elevation of the upper end of one of the push-arms, and Fig. 6. a top 'view of one-set of the bending devices.

Like letters denote corresponding parts in all the figures.

A represents the parallel rails of the coolingbed, which is of ordinary construction, and has the rollers B journaled. in stationary boxes and projecting slightly above the rails A. The hot rail O, when taken from the rolls,is pushed transversely across the rails of the doolingbed upon fi lsuch rollers B, and, after being curved, is oved bodily to either side of the cooling-bed to make room for the next rail. The rails are moved onthe cooling-bed in the usual manner.

D D are two parallel shafts, arranged transversely below, and across the rails A of the cooling-bed and below the ends of the rollers 13.

To the shafts D D are rigidly secured a. series of push-arms, E E, the arms of the two shafts being placed opposite each other. The heads of the push-arms have vertical slots at, which receive the screw-threaded shanks of push-bars F F, such push-bars being secured to the arms E E by nuts I) on each side thereof, and being capable of a longitudinal as well as a vertical adjustment in the slots a. The 1:msl1-bars F F of the opposite shafts project towards each other, and carry 011 their inner adjoining ends presser-plates G G. These plates press against the base and head of the rail and bend the same. They are secured to the ends of the push-bars by ball-aud-socket joints, so that they can he set at the proper angle and clamped in position. To form these joints each resser-plate has a shank terminating in a ball, 0. Thepush-barshavejaws old which grasp such ball. The jaw d of each bar is formed solid therewith, while the jaw d is secured to thejaw d by one or more screws or bolts, 6. By tightening up the bolt ethepresser-plate can betixed at any desired angle.

To one endof each of the shafts D D is secured at rockarm, H H, each connected directly with a piston,-I I, through compensating links j, which pistons work in vertical cylinders K K and are forced upward by bydraulic pressure.

By means of the down ward movement of the pistons, the shafts D D are given a partial revolution, which is sufficient to withdraw the push arms and bars and the presser-plates below the upper surface ofthe rails A of the cooling-bed, soastoleavethebedclearformoving rails sidewise thereon. Now, by adjusting the push-bars lengthwise in the heads of the push-arms the presser-plates can be set so that when the pistons reach the upper limit of their movement the faces of the presserplates will collectively form an exact curve of predetermined radius, and 'will be just far enough apart to accommodate between them a rail laid on its side, without compressing been obtained the apparatus is ready for operation. Each hot rail 0 as it comes from the rolls is moved on its side into the proper position on the cooling-bed. The apparatus then being operated, the push arms and bars will rise up between the rails of the cooling-bed, and the presser-plates Will strike the base and head of the hot rail and bend the same to the proper curve. The pistons will then be reversed and the presser-plates will fall below the surface of the cooling-bed, ready to rise again for bendingthe next rail. Bythese means the rails can be given an exact curve, and this can be done quickly and without the delay caused heretofore.

It is evident that steam could be used instead of hydraulic pressure, or that the shafts D D could be connected indirectly with the power through suitable devices instead of directly therewith.

What I claim as my invention is-- 1. In apparatus for bending hot rails, for the purpose set forth, the combination, with the cooling-bed, of the two opposite sets of presserplates, operated by mechanical power, and

rising and falling through the cooling-bed, said plates pressing upon the base and head of the hot rail, and the rail being bent by the combined movement of both sets of presserplates, substantially as described.

push-arms secured to such shafts, push-bars carried by said. arms and having presserplates, substantially as described and shown.

3. In apparatus for bending hot rails, the two sets of push-arms F F, having adjustable presser-plates G G, substantially as described and shown.

4. In apparatus for bending hot rails, the two sets of push-arms F F, having adjustable presser-plates G G, connected therewith by balland -socket joints, substantially as described and shown.

5. In apparatus for bending hot rails, the combination, with the cooling-bed, of the two sha'ftsD D, connected by rocker-arms directly with working-pistons, the push-arms, pushbars, and presser-pla-tes, substantially as described and shown.

HENRY G. KRIETE.

Witnesses:

F. W. KASEHAGEN, OLIVER WV. MARBLE. 

